How to disable optical drive?

My optical drive is intermittently going crazy and crashing my system. I've gone through all the support options - hardware test, PRAM reset, PMU reset. Nothing works. So I don't have time to take in to get fixed right now. Apple tech says there's a command line way to disable the drive but they won't tell me what it is. Does anyone have a link to the site or know how to do it?

None I know of short of (ugh) a) voiding the warranty by opening up the computer to pull the plug on it or b) putting tape over the slot.

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How to disable super drive in macbook boot?

i would like to know if there is a way to disable optical drive in boot sequence?
like in windows you can set the boot sequence and then the boot is quicker.
and also the noise the optical drive makes is a bit annoying.
any idea anybody?
thanks

Hi S,
If you have the newer unibody style, it's very easy. If it's one of the earlier models, it's considerably more difficult. Go to Apple Menu > About This Mac > More Info > Hardware and find your Model Identifier. Then go to ifixit.com, or powerbookmedic.com or macsales.com or youtube or others and there are illustrated, detailed directions. Good luck to you and post back if you have further questions.

How to create an on/off icon for disabling optical drive?

I am not really using my optical drive in my MacBook Pro (early 2011), but I don't want to "dismantle" it by taking it apart and unplugging the power cable - I may need it sometime. But I want to save it somehow...
I don't know if this solution would work:
sudo kextunload IOSCSIArchitectureModelFamily.kext/Contents/PlugIns/IOSCSIMultimediaCommandsDevice.kext
sudo kextunload IOBDStorageFamily.kext
sudo kextunload IODVDStorageFamily.kext
sudo kextunload IOCDStorageFamily.kext
If it worked - would there be a solution for creating an ON icon for enabling it, and an OFF icon for disabling? If so, could you please tell me any instructions?

I'm a bit unclear on what you're trying to do. What do you seek to achieve by disabling the optical drive in this manner?

How to disable CD-DRIVE checking, while using a Dolphin file manager

Hello.
I would like ask for a help. I have one problem that's quite annoying. It is related to checking cd-drive when using a dolphin file menager. It always cheecks it when Dolphin is launched from K or launcher on taskbar for the first time, again it happens when i close it and open again.
Is there a way to disable checking of cd-drive in Dolphin? This behaviour occurs on KDE with all linux system that i checked: Slackware, Arch, Kubuntu. Look at this:
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So I think if you tried to google for "udisks optical (or cd or dvd) polling" or something like that, you might be able to figure out how this is done.
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Encore DVD 2 Tryout uninstall disabling optical drives

When I uninstall Encore DVD 2.0 Tryout version, my PC's optical drives get disabled. No other DVD/CD playing/writing software can access the drives.
I disabled the "enable recording to this drive" option, but it still gave the same problem. I reinstalled the Tryout version (though I cannot use the software itself), and found that the optical drives were then accessible. I tested this on another machine and the same happens.
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I could just leave the EncoreTryout installation on the PCs, but they take up a lot of space for something I cannot even use.
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Thanks for the link -- it helped eventually. I tried the registry change given in the referred document, but it did not help me. The document actually did not directly address my problem -- my problem dealt more with uninstalling Encore rather than installing it. However, the document gave me an idea on how I could address the issue I had. In case this helps others, here's what I did to get some success:
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The Optical drive on the tx2500 cannot disabled but it is hot swappable...There is Optical Drive release latch at the bottom, you can take that out and replace it with a slot Filler...
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Rgds

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As far as I know its not easy to replace the ODD because its hidden under the bottom cover this cover needs to be removed firstly in order to get access the CD/DVD drive, HDD, etc
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[Portege R500|http://www.irisvista.com/tech/laptops/Toshiba-Portege-R500/disassemble-laptop-remove-hard-drive.htm]
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CD and paper stuck in drive - How to disable the drive?

So I didn't pay attention and put a CD into my Intel iMac's CD drive that had a piece of paper stuck to the back of the CD. And now, of course, it won't come out again.
I've been through all the advice on here, YouTube, ... you name it and came to the conclusion that a trip to an Apple retailer (no Apple Store here yet) is the only solution.
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Hadn't seen that video and it looks like it could work. But the CD drive in an aluminum iMac is different and I couldn't get 2 credit cards in. I've tried with one and the sticky tape but that didn't work.
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Disable optical drive totally (Mac 0S 10.6)

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Thanks a bunch
Paul

AFAIK, there isn't any. Why? Details might help.
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[Solved] Disabling Optical Drive

Hi,
I'm trying to disable my (internal) CD/DVD drive on my laptop, but I can't seem to find instructions on the forum or on the internet (I guess my search terms are just too generic). My main issue is that something seems to access the drive at intervals, and since my drive hasn't been working for a couple of years now, I thought it would be much less hassle to just disable it altogether (to save on power consumption too).
Can anyone give me some pointers on this?
Last edited by Ploink (2012-12-29 14:52:23)

In general it's possible to remove the drive from the laptop. Makes it also lighter But if you don't want such a hole in your laptop, you could put it back in, but make sure that it's not being connected.
Maybe you could install a battery instead of the drive, which would give your laptop a longer runtime without external power.

How to disable optical drive?

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